Unrestored Gullwing to record-breaking GTO: The auction results that turned heads

1956 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Gullwing

Sold by Artcurial, £3.7m
This Gullwing drew triple the usual price for two reasons – firstly, it was original and unrestored; secondly, it had a remarkable story. Bought new by Frenchman Claude Foussier, Olympic clay-pigeon shooter and director of Pernod-Ricard, it spent 21 years in storage at the château of a subsequent owner. He sold it to a German enthusiast who kept it in a sealed bubble, still covered in the dust from its days in hibernation, before selling it in 2024 to Artcurial’s vendor. Who, by bizarre coincidence, lives at Foussier’s old Paris home and saw it auctioned 70 years and one day after it was built.

1995 Aston Martin DB7

Sold by Manor Park Classics, £5635
An Aston for Nissan Micra money? No MOT and some demon rust lessened the appeal but it had covered just 65,000 miles, featured a desirable manual gearbox and it was only the 22nd DB7 built.

1934 Citroën Kégresse P17E Half-Track

Sold by Bonhams, £30,700
Never mind Land Rovers – if you really want to go anywhere get a Kégresse. This is the type of vehicle company founder André Citroën sent across Asia to undertake the 1931 Croisière Jaune expedition.

1972 MG Midget

Sold by The Market, £11,750
If you spent the winter in your shed pouring money into creating a Midget race car, look away now – this one was a freshly-built example fitted with all the best bits. Impossible to build for the price.

1971 Alpine A110S 1600 S

Sold by Gooding Christie’s, £207,800
This A110 was campaigned by the works team, scoring a win at the 1971 Acropolis Rally with Ove Andersson at the wheel. Derelict in 1985, it was restored to original specification six years ago.

2007 Piaggio Vespa LX 125 Ferrari Edition

Sold by RM Sotheby’s, £68,200
Mad money for a modern Vespa but this is a Ferrari Edition. One of seven made, it featured Cavallino badging and a saddle trimmed in suede by Schedoni, famed for its luggage and race car seats.

1999 Bentley Continental R Millennium

Sold by Bonhams, £71,300
Here’s a pub quiz question: what was the most expensive regular production car you could buy in 1999? Answer: this £250k Bentley Continental R Millennium. This was number one of just 10 built.

1985 Ferrari 288 GTO

Sold by RM Sotheby’s, £5M
If you had this sitting in your garage, you would probably be tempted to drive it. Unlike its one owner who covered only 15,000 miles since acquiring it new – and a mere half a mile since 2010. The result: a world-record price.

Forthcoming sale highlights

• Bingo Auctions, City Circuit, Tokyo bay, Japan, March 14
  Bingo auctions was set up in Japan in 2017 and hosts sales in conjunction with the Tokyo Auto Salon and Suzuka race circuit. In January, the firm set a record for an Alpina BMW Z8 at £363,500 and is hoping for similar success at this event, which is being held on Tokyo’s state-of-the-art urban kart track.
• Bonhams, Stafford, April 25-26
  Spring wouldn’t be spring without the annual Bonhams Spring Stafford motorcycle sale. This edition, as ever, will feature the entire spectrum of powered two-wheeler history with lots dating from the late 19th century to the present day. Star of the show will almost certainly be a 1965 MV Agusta 500 Four grand prix racer that’s tipped to fetch £220,000.